Jim is a retired USA Diplomat who lived in 13 countries and has given Destination/Maritime History Lectures on more than 120 cruises in Europe, Asia, S. America. He graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy (BSc) and University of Chicago (MBA). He was a US Navy Submarine Officer, VP International for Fortune 500 companies. He was a University Professor for History, Geography, Logistics, and International Marketing. Having lived and worked in Panama and transited the Panama Canal 30 times and Suez Canal 4 times, Jim can give the ship's bridge commentary about the history of the Canal in English or Spanish. He has also narrated bridge commentary about Glaciers in Chile and Norway.

In July 2000 Paul took early retirement from the Printing Ink Business and that year he was a crew member aboard "Quadstone" in the BT Global Challenge round the world yacht race, otherwise known as the worlds toughest yacht race. After 17 days crossing the Atlantic, “Quadstone” won the 1st. Since returning from this epic voyage Paul has undertaken many adventures including walking and cycling the length and breadth of Britain, climbing Mount Kilimanjaro and travelling the high Andes of South America.

Martin P. Lee graduated with first class honours in geography and geology from King's College London in 1975 followed by a masters degree in geography from Keele University. After service as a fellow at Lancaster University, he became a lecturer at Leicester University, and then a senior lecturer at the Royal Military College of Science. Upon early retirement in 2006, Martin has been a Gentleman Dance Host and Port Lecturer. He now spends half the year at sea and half the year at his home in Bournemouth.

Dr Karen WoodmanDestination History & Culture

Coming from:

Brisbane, Queensland Australia

Dr Karen Woodman is a retired university professor, who is an entertaining cruise enrichment speaker on topics such as history, education, street art, culture, dance, language, and food as they relate to cruise destinations. Karen is also an avid social dancer who enjoys sharing her love of dance, the benefits of social dance, and the mind-body connection. She has traveled extensively, including North and South America, the South Pacific, Australia and New Zealand, the Caribbean, Cuba, Europe, Scandinavia, and South-East Asia.